A smaller than usual field of 2.0 Hot Rods were on hand, with Drew McKeown making the most of the poor conditions to run down Ally Neill and go on to win the opening heat ahead of Wayne Woolsey. Drew repeated the feat in the second heat, winning with ease again ahead of Aaron Stewart.
The Grand Final of the Hoosier Challenge Series then saw the cars gridded on aggregate points order from the series. McKeown really had his car dialled in perfectly to the slippery conditions, winning from pole position at a breeze ahead of Jordan Rochford and Woolsey. The top three all received race tyres and trophies courtesy of series sponsors Hoosier Tyres UK.

There was a clear win for National Champion Robbie Wright in the opening heat of the 1300 Stock Cars, as he took the flag ahead of Curtis Greer and Josh McKinstry. The second heat was action packed too as Greer and Wright had a major falling out, with Gareth Halliday taking the win on the road but copping a penalty for a jump start. That gifted the win to Fionn Donnelly ahead of McKinstry.

The Ulster Championship final started in explosive fashion, with Wright putting Greer away in no uncertain terms on the Brown Trout Bend. Up front Donnelly was revelling in the conditions, taking the Ulster title win ahead of Halliday and McKinstry.

The opening Thunder Rods heat fell to Joshua McMullan after a fine drive ahead of Robert Nicholl and Nolan Wilson. Wilson then led heat two before James Steele powered ahead to take the victory over newcomer Keatyn Hogg and a flying Daniel Rodgers.

The final was all about Alex Mailey, the novice grader quickly disappearing into the distance to take an impressive win over Liam Wilson and Rodgers. Despite the best efforts of Rodgers and James Goldie, Ballymena racer David Reynolds was able to hang on to win the season long NI Points Championship.

Strabane’s James McKinney drove a storming race on the outside line to win the opening Lightning Rods heat from World Cup holder Stuart Agnew and Ross Houston. McKinney then repeated the dose in heat two, taking another great win once again ahead of Agnew and Houston.

Agnew got the early break in the feature race, and that was enough for him to take the silverware home to Magheralin. Houston, McKinney and Mark Corry filled out the places.

The Junior Productions contested their biggest event of the domestic calendar, the Irish Championship. Leyton Hughes and Callum Doak shared the front row ahead of defending champion Matthew Weir and Andrew Russell. Hughes made the perfect start and began to edge clear but Doak kept him honest all the way through the race. Callum could never get just close enough to mount a challenge, and after driving the perfect race Leyton raced home to the double chequered flags and the Irish Championship title. Doak, Weir, Ryan Berry and Dylan Fegan completed the top finishers.
The reverse grid Irish Revenge race saw British Champion Casey Cherry first home but he was docked for contact, handing the win to recent form man Alfie Litter ahead of Doak and Cherry.

The opening race for the Ninja Karts was the Hollytree Rare Breeds Farm Individual Achievement Award for those drivers who haven’t won a race in 2024. Tommy Johnston hit the front but was overhauled for the win in the closing stages by a flying Rowdy Grattan. Johnston, Eddie Fowler and Cahan Bradley were next home.
A number of visitors from across the UK then joined in for the 2024 Champion of Champions event, with European Champion Charlie Weston winning the opening qualifier ahead of Mason Carberry and Parker Smith for an all-English top three. Belfast’s Ethan McQuillan restored home honour with a great victory after a fine drive in heat two, ahead of World Champion Lewis Hazlett and Austin Grattan for an all-Ulster top three!
The Hollytree Rare Breeds Farm Champion of Champions final saw Weston quickly hit the front and he drove a commanding race to take a great victory. A storming places battle fell to Austin Grattan ahead of McQuillan and Jack Murphy.

The evening’s contact racing was provided by the Superstox, with Brian Lammey and Ethan Martin contesting the lead of the opening heat before Jamie McCann powered through to win over Lee Davison and Martin. Heat two saw Davison go one better with the win this time, ahead of Jordan Robinson and McCann. The final again saw Martin lead the way until Irish Champion Davison moved ahead to complete his double for the night ahead of Robinson and McCann

An excellent grid of Thunder Rods contested the King of Aghadowey, with Irish Champion James Goldie taking the opener ahead of David Reynolds. Heat two saw Josh McMullan take the chequered flag ahead of Matthew Nicholl and Daniel Rodgers.
Defending King of Aghadowey Andrew McLean set the pace in the final, tracked every lap by Rodgers in second. The leader was then baulked by the backmarking Amos McCloy, resulting in contact from behind which spun McLean out. Rodgers took the lead by in the final analysis was disqualified for his part in McLean’s demise, handing the win to the fortunate Goldie ahead of Lee McCloy and Reynolds.

The ultra-competitive Stock Rods saw some excellent race action, with Larne’s Sam Wilson taking the opening heat win over Mark Crawford by the slenderest of margins on the line. Heat two saw Cork’s Darragh O’Shea took a welcome and deserved win over Sam McNeice and Jonny Cardwell.
In the final Aaron Dilly set the early pace, but it was all about McNeice in this one, as Sam swooped ahead and on to a great victory. Dan Shannon, Callum Magill and Crawford completed the places.

Alfie Litter took the opening heat win in the Junior Productions, just holding off his cousin Callum Doak and Leyton Hughes. The second heat saw a runaway victory for Ryan Abernethy Jnr, as he took the flag ahead of Hughes and Doak.
Litter hit the front early in the final, and he held on to complete his double for the night despite the efforts of the fast charging Doak. Jack Morrison, Andrew Russell and Ryan Berry filled out the top five.

Lightning Rods
The first ever World Cup for the Lightning Rods saw the opening qualifying heat fall to Waringstown’s Ross Houston ahead of Stuart Agnew and James McKinney, before the second heat went the way of Portadown’s Mark Corry ahead of Jake Morgan and McKinney.
The Cirrus Plastics World Cup was yet another fantastic title race, with the top four drivers covered by a blanket for the whole distance. Houston and McKinney squabbled over the lead which allowed Agnew inside to the front. Despite heavy pressure from behind, Stuart held his nerve to win the World Cup ahead of McKinney and Corry.

Sunday’s NI Open saw heat wins for Agnew and Houston, with the latter and McKinney paired on the front row on aggregate points. McKinney hit the front at the off but had Houston all over him, until they tangled whilst amongst backmarkers. That opened the door for Agnew, who grasped the opportunity to hit the front and take his second title of the weekend. Corry and Houston completed the podium.

Ninja Karts
The largest ever Ulster entry for the 6-11 year old Ninja Karts stars served up some fantastic racing, with the Keir Millar Memorial Trophy Saturday’s big race. The heats went to English trio George Cooper, Charlie Weston and Henry Hunn. The final, in memory of the former star Ninja racer Keir Millar, saw a great battle for the lead with another English driver, Mason Carberry, coming through to win the superb trophy ahead of Weston and Jaxon York.

Sunday saw the kids chasing the DMC Gold Cup, with the heats falling to Weston, Carberry and Hunn. The final was another excellent event with 40 karts taking the green flag. Weston came through for the win in fine style ahead of Charlie Major and York.

Support Racing
Two Irish Masters titles completed the programme, with the 1300 Stock Cars on Saturday impressing with some heavy hitting racing. Craig Bodenham and Michael Logan shared the heats, before Curtis Greer held off a spirited last bend assault from Davy Wright to take the title ahead of Bobby Johnston and Scottish based World Champion Darren Rae.

The 2.0 Hot Rods Irish Masters saw Scotland’s Keith Brown and Antrim’s Conor Hughes share the heats, before Hughes dominated the final to take a superb win over Jordan Rochford and Wayne Woolsey.

The Junior Productions were using the reverse grid system as they contested the King of Aghadowey, with Leyton Hughes showing his quality to win the opening heat ahead of Dylan Fegan and Jack Morrison. Charlie Johnston led heat two for a time before Alfie Litter came through to take a hard earned win ahead of Ryan Berry and Owen O’Brien.
The rain appeared before the King of Aghadowey final, with Berry in the lead early on from pole position. Callum Doak then found the slenderest of gaps down his inside to take up the running, but by now all the top runners were together in what was heading for a superb finish. It was becoming an enthralling race, with Harry Minish and Johnston impressing as they came right from the rear of the line up. Doak got edged out of the lead through the Brown Trout Bend, with Minish coming through to take the chequered flag on the road. A number of penalties were then handed out for contact during the race, which elevated Matthew Weir to the win ahead of Hughes and an unfortunately demoted Minish.

The Rookie Bangers were spectacular all evening, with red flags required twice during the opening heat given the amount of action. England’s Harry Botfield came through for the win ahead of Phillip Farrell and Stephen Boyd, before Marc Morrell won the second heat from Botfield. The one also saw a rollover for Rodney Herron on the exit of the Brown Trout bend.
Botfield led the wet final early on, only to lose out to Gavin Gamble who pulled clear. As the action continued all around the track, a late caution for a loose wheel with two laps to go set up a grandstand finish. With the field biting at his tail, Gamble pulled off the perfect restart to claim a well deserved win ahead of Botfield and Farrell.

It was great to see an increased number of Thunder Rods back on track, with the action as frantic as ever. Ballymena’s Tyler McMaster impressed on his way to the opening heat win over Liam Irwin and Robert Nicholl, before Tyler repeated the dose in heat two to take another fine victory over Irwin and Jordan Nicholl.
The final saw a great scrap early on as Sean Boyd, Irwin and Nicholl all contested the top spot. Nicholl used his experience to scythe through to the lead, from where he raced home to take the win. Irish Champion James Goldie raced well to take second spot, ahead of Ian Hobson and Liam Wilson.